Mississippi House passes amended medical marijuana bill

Before House lawmakers voted to pass the Mississippi Medical Cannabis Act, several changes were made to the bill in committee. The Drug Policy Committee amended the measure to transfer all oversight from the Department of Agriculture and Commerce to the Department of Health, as well as restructure zoning regulations. The amendment also tightened restrictions on how much marijuana a participant can purchase in a week. Republican Representative Lee Yancey chairs the committee. He says this reduces the total amount of purchasable marijuana from 3.5 ounces per month, to 3 ounces.

“And so we’re coming in a cautious way to start a program, see how it goes and get our reports back each year and see if we need to increase it. Let there be more testing, more research, and let the science catch up with the politics if you will.”

In the original ballot initiative voted for by Mississippians, the monthly limit for medical marijuana would have been 5 ounces. This most recent version of the bill cuts those allotments by 40 percent. Jonathan Brown is Director of Grassroots Community Headquarters which gathered signatures for the original ballot initiative. He says this is a decent foundation since the Governor was calling for much stricter limits.

“If I had my druthers, it would be still at five ounces a month for sure. I think that three ounces is a reasonable compromise with what the governor was asking for which was really beyond the pale. And so I think this is a sign to the governor that the legislature is negotiating in good faith. And so while it’s not optimal for patients, there’s room to change that later in future sessions.”

All attempts to amend the measure in the House chamber failed, including amendments that would strengthen restrictions on lawmakers participating in the cannabis industry, or allowing farmers to grow marijuana outdoors.